Northern, WI 2/21/12 (StreetBeat) -- Strong demand for everything from paint to concrete helped Home Depot Inc (NYSE:HD) report better-than-expected quarterly sales and profit as one of the warmest U.S. winters on record encouraged homeowners to take up home projects earlier than usual.The world's largest home improvement chain also gave a better-than expected profit forecast for the year, just days after a report showed U.S. homebuilder sentiment had risen in February to its highest level in more than four years.
That report raised hopes that the housing market was stabilizing.
Tuesday's news drove Home Depot shares to their highest level since May 2002 and made some analysts more optimistic about the retailer's prospects.
Credit Suisse analyst Gary Balter said the most important part of Home Depot's strong performance and earnings beat were that "they are occurring prior to any sustained housing recovery."
The company's earnings power will rise significantly once the housing market and the economy improve, Balter added.
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